Something I’ve always appreciated about where we live is having the mountains so close by. Skiing in the winter, hiking in the summer, or just a bike ride to Banff, are all things that I really enjoy.

Having an airplane means I also have another way to enjoy the mountains. Even though I’ve flown the same trips in and through the Rockies many times I always find something new and interesting to explore and appreciate.

If you haven’t done any mountain flying then summer and fall are great seasons to try it out. You don’t need to get high and go over the top of the peaks. It’s easy and safe to follow the highways, like the TransCanada or Highway 3, at 7500 or 8500 feet. You’ll still have plenty of terrain clearance and be high enough to really see some interesting scenery.

One of our club members, Stu Simpson, has a couple of good presentations for basic mountain flying, and he’s always willing to answer questions and coach pilots interested in giving it a try. Of course, there are plenty of books and online materials you can access, too. While the more expansive books and videos go into great detail, it’s important to realize that mountain flying doesn’t have to be complicated.

Really, you can follow the TransCanada through the Bow Valley, which is miles wide, and turn around at, say Canmore or Banff, just to get your feet wet. Poking your nose into the Crowsnest Pass on a calm day to see the Frank Slide still leaves you close to the familiar comfort zone of the prairies. Taking small trips into the Rocks is a great way to get comfortable with that side of the map.

One of the best mountain trips I experienced was in 2007 with Stu, Barry Wood and Gerry MacDonald. Stu had a Merlin, Barry had a Beech Musketeer, Gerry was in his 182, and I had my RANS S-12 with a Rotax 582. We went through Hinton, Jasper, Prince George, Kamloops, Salmon Arm, Cranbrook, and then home. It was a spectacular week of flying I’ll never forget.

My second favorite trip is anytime Stu invites me to accompany him out to Castlegar to visit his folks for lunch. It’s a nice flight and we enjoy great hospitality.

The best wintertime trip I have done was delivering a CH250 to a buyer in Nelson. It was a warm day but there was already lots of snow. The roughness of the mountains slipped away beneath the white duvet of the snow, making the slopes look very inviting.

My most recent mountain flight was with Ralph Inkster on a trip from CYBW to Vernon. Since I’ve recently purchased an RV-6, Ralph offered to help me get familiar with it by flying in his. The RV-6 is really comfortable, and at 150KTS you get where you’re going in a hurry. It turned out to be a brilliant day of aviating.

Mountain flying can be incredibly rewarding and the experience will leave you breathless. It allows you to broaden your aviation horizons and build your confidence and knowledge, both in yourself and in your airplane. It’s a very worthwhile undertaking.